Economies in central and eastern Europe have been hit hard by the worldwide credit crisis and less demand for exports in western Europe.

VOA: special.2009.03.06

Diarrhea is already on the rise. Byrs says Ghana also has been hit hard by what she calls,the deluge.

VOA: standard.2009.09.05

"We have been hit really hard by the recession and I think that probably has got a lot to do with it."

VOA: standard.2010.05.04

And the economy has been hit hard by the fall in the price of diamonds which make up one-third of its gross domestic product.

VOA: standard.2009.10.19

Life seems to be back to normal. However,in the small coastal communities hit hard by the tsunami, signs of devastation and loss are everywhere.

VOA: standard.2009.10.05

President Obama told people in the nation's largest state, which has been hit especially hard by the economic crisis, that "there will be brighter days ahead."

VOA: standard.2009.03.20

Leone was hit hard by the tsunami. Last Tuesday, the usually peaceful ocean surged into a mountain of water that swept through the scenic seaside village, on the southwest side of the main island.

VOA: standard.2009.10.04

Many Americans learned this the hard way by investing all their money in stock shares, which then lost value.

VOA: special.2011.03.27

"So when foreign companies start negotiating with local Chinese suppliers, they really press hard on the prices offered by those Chinese suppliers."

VOA: special.2010.06.18

That is,this kind of pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps, that with enough determination and hard work that you can transcend limitations of money or class or gender.

VOA: special.2010.03.08

By the time she was seventeen, Marilyn was trying very hard to be a movie actress.

VOA: special.2009.12.06

The Green Revolution was the result of hard work by agricultural scientists who had green thumbs.

VOA: special.2010.05.23

But it was a hard struggle. Few of the books she needed were written in the Braille language that the blind could read by touching pages.

VOA: special.2011.08.07

The racism represented by this object is hard to believe today.

VOA: special.2010.03.03

"Once you get noticed by a company, it gets a lot easier, but it's so hard to get noticed because there's so many people looking for so few jobs."

VOA: special.2010.06.11

By example,Arthur's father taught the importance of hard work.

VOA: special.2010.02.07

they send you the hard decisions," "By the time a decision gets to your desk, it is a hard decision.

VOA: standard.2009.12.15

I don't know if you're aware of this, but these honorary degrees are apparently pretty hard to come by.

VOA: standard.2009.05.17

Malaria is caused by a complex parasite that makes it hard to target with a vaccine.

VOA: standard.2010.01.20

The Asia-Pacific travel industry is on the rise after two years of hard times caused by soaring fuel prices and the global economic slump.

VOA: standard.2010.02.04

The move has been embraced by some insurgents, but rejected by the hard-line Shabab.

VOA: standard.2009.03.16